Scores of dairy farmers, mostly operating within the limits of the municipal corporation, have flagged the dearth of facilities at the dairy complexes in Kanwala and Katholi villages in Ambala City.
They have pointed out the absence of sewage lines, lack of cleaning of the choked lines and dumping of cow dung in the open. A visit to one of the dairies on the outskirts of the city revealed garbage dumped on the roadside, open drains and no boundary walls on empty plots filled with waste .
Rishi Pal, a resident of Sector 7, said he shifted to Kanwala complex in 2015 and the civic body has not even cleaned the choked sewage lines once.
Kuldeep Singh said that there is no sewage line for waste removal at the Katholi dairy complex. “We shifted here in 2007, but can’t drive through the dairy, as the car gets stuck in the cow dung dumped along the roads. After the recent drives to remove dairies from urban zones, the problem has increased,” Singh said.
An association of dairy farmers under the banner of Cattle Dairy Union recently met deputy commissioner Vikram and handed over a memorandum to him, addressed to the chief minister.
“The government should consider resolving the sanitation issues at the dairy complexes and buy cow dung on lines of other states like Chhattisgarh,” he added.
Lal said the memorandum also raised the issue of increasing prices of fodder in the state, leading to lesser profits. However, to avoid shortage of animal food to some extent, the district administration has also banned the sale of fodder outside Ambala.
Vikram said that the representation was sent to the CM’s office and he has also asked the municipal corporation to look into the sanitation issue.
Land in both the places was allotted by the INLD government in 2003 after a survey and the civic body was tasked with shifting of dairies from urban areas. But, it couldn’t be accomplished, due to several reasons including a stay order by the Punjab and Haryana high court, people aware of the matter said.
